The Kansas Department of Agriculture is seeking feedback from Kansans for the 2025 Bluestem Pasture Survey to collect information on native tallgrass pasture use and practices. The survey is administered through the K-State Land Use Survey Center and will be open through April 30, 2025.

The Bluestem Pasture Survey provides reliable, accurate information to Kansas ranchers and the agricultural community as a whole. The survey asks about native tallgrass pasture availability, leasing rates, and fencing rates, and should only take about 15 minutes to complete.

“The native tallgrass region of Kansas provides rich grazing opportunities for cattle producers, and this biennial survey collects valuable data that can aid landowners and renters when entering into lease agreements,” said Secretary of Agriculture Mike Beam. “Underwriting this important survey tool is one way our agency works to provide useful data that supports the state’s agriculture industry.”

The 2025 Kansas Bluestem Pasture Survey is voluntary, anonymous and confidential. To complete the survey, please visit tinyurl.com/bluestem25. If you are unable to complete the survey, but wish to participate, please contact Dr. Leah Tsoodle, Director, Land Use Survey Office, at [email protected] or Heather Johnson, KDA economist, at 785-564-6726 or [email protected] to receive a written survey or to complete the survey over the telephone.

The Bluestem Pasture Survey is a collaborative effort between the Division of Agriculture Marketing at the Kansas Department of Agriculture and the K-State Land Use Survey Center within the Department of Agricultural Economics at Kansas State University.

Centuries before the now-banned red dye No. 3 was synthesized in a lab, humans turned to insects to bring a little scarlet, vermillion or burgundy into their foods, fabrics and artwork.

On Jan. 15, the federal Food and Drug Administration banned the use of Red Dye No. 3 for use in food, decades after banning it in cosmetics. A generation earlier, Red No. 2 was banned as a potential carcinogen.

“Crimson lake, also called carmine lake, is a red pigment derived from carminic acid, which is produced from the cochineal bug, Dactylopius coccus,” said Jon Zawislak, assistant professor of apiculture and urban entomology for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture.

These are scale insects in the order Hemiptera — the “true bugs,” not beetles — that feed primarily on many species of Opuntia cacti, or prickly pears.

“It was traditionally produced by the pre-Columbian natives of Mexico,” Zawislak said. “After the Spanish conquest, it became an important export commodity from the New World to Europe, especially as a textile dye.”

Prickly pear cacti are breeding grounds for cochineal bugs. Adult female and immature cochineal bugs are flightless. But adult males have wings and can fly. After mating on the cactus, the females lay eggs and the nymphs remain on the plant to feed on its juices.

“They produce red carminic acid as a defense against predators,” Zawislak said.

“Once mature, the insects were laboriously collected by hand picking or brushing off the cactus pads, killed by boiling in water, sun-dried and ground into a fine powder,” he said. “It takes more than 30,000 insects to make one pound of this pigment powder.”

Carmine, the primary ingredient in the red dye, is extracted by boiling the powder. The color could be altered by adding other chemicals.

“The brilliant pigment was used to dye the robes of Catholic Cardinals and the British Redcoats,” Zawislak said. “It’s also been used as a natural colorant in many foods and cosmetics, sometimes listed on package ingredients as ‘carmine,’ ‘E120,’ ‘cochineal extract’ or ‘Natural Red 4’ — making whatever it’s in non-vegetarian or vegan, and as a protein it could potentially cause allergic reactions in some people.”

In 2012, Starbucks announced it was phasing out insect-based color from its food, instead using a tomato-based color.

Cochineals are still farmed in parts of Mexico, but the practice is on the decline.

Not the only bugs

However, cochineals are not the only insect in the dye business.

here are a few species that produce similar products, and at least one more is commercially grown — Kerria lacca —  from which ‘lac’ dye and shellac, a natural resin, originate,” said Austin Jones,  extension instructor and director of undergraduate education and outreach coordinator, with the Division of Agriculture and the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences. “India seems to be the main area of production, but other countries on the Asian continent dabble as well.”

Use of dyes in food

“Food dyes are used to add or correct the color or shade of a product, often to increase the product’s appeal to consumers,” said Sun Ferreira, assistant professor-food process engineering for the Division of Agriculture and Bumpers College.

“In the case of jams using berries, a processor may not need to add dyes since the fruits will provide enough color,” he said. “However, in products such as breakfast cereals, beverages, syrups, and baked goods, the color provided by the fruits may not be bright or intense enough, and processors may choose to use food colorants.

This happens because the natural red color may fade during cooking/baking and storage. Additionally, the use of colorants or dyes ensures product consistency in appearance, as horticultural products may vary over seasons or varieties,” Ferreira said.

Ferreira noted that food producers have several natural dye options:

• Beet juice for deep reds and is used in beverages, plant-based meat analogs and baked goods
• Paprika, turmeric and annatto, when mixed can produce red hues.
• Raspberries and strawberries can be used to create pinks and reds
• Red cabbage, which can achieve shades of red to blue depending on the product acidity.

“The issue with some of these natural alternatives is their stability to light, heat, and oxygen, which may alter their color,” he said. “To overcome this, techniques such as microencapsulation can be used to extend and facilitate their application, although this may increase their cost.”

“One of the main and greatly used ‘natural’ alternatives is the use of lycopene extracted from tomatoes,” Ferreira said. “Lycopene-based food colorants are heat, light, and pH stable, which greatly facilitates their usage.”

Ferreira said that are still some synthetic dyes that are FDA approved and widely used, but “also have data showing potential associations with behavioral issues. The FDA and European Union may require label claims for these dyes.”

K-State’s Blakeslee says food bans are based on best available science

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s recent ban on the use of a popular food dye will create a new challenge for home bakers aiming for a signature cherry red color in candy, cakes, icings and other food products.

Kansas State University food scientist Karen Blakeslee said there are foods that can substitute for FD&C Red No. 3 – such as beets, cranberries, raspberries and more – “but these may also add flavors to food that may not be wanted.”

She added that food manufacturers and researchers will look at how these new colors react with other ingredients or temperature changes.

The FDA announced on Jan. 15 that it is banning the use of FD&C Red No. 3 in any food product or drugs that are ingested. The government agency cited two studies indicating cancer in laboratory male rats that were exposed to high levels of the dye, due to a rat-specific hormonal mechanism.

To date, there are no scientific studies that have shown a connection between consuming FD&C Red No. 3 and cancer in humans, but a provision within the U.S. Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (called the Delaney Clause) prohibits the use of food or color additives if they are proven to cause cancer in humans or animals.

The FDA will require manufacturers using FD&C Red No. 3 to reformulate their products by Jan. 15, 2027 or Jan. 18, 2028, depending on the size of the business. Imported foods may not contain this ingredient.

If shopping for food colors, consumers can avoid products containing FD&C Red No. 3 by reading the ingredient statement on the packaging, according to Blakeslee.

“Look for FD&C Red No. 3, Red 3, or if the product is imported, it may be called erythrosine,” she said. “FD&C Red No. 3 is a certified color additive and it must be specified in the ingredient statement if it is included in the product.”

Other examples of color substitutes for FD&C Red No. 3 include red beet extract or paprika extract. Blakeslee said future decisions on food additives by the FDA will be based on the best science available. The agency shares information regarding recalls, outbreaks and more on its website.

More food safety tips are available online from K-State’s Rapid Response Center for Food Science. Blakeslee publishes a monthly newsletter, called You Asked It!, with timely tips for safe food in and out of the home.

More information is also available at local extension offices in Kansas.